


Fleeting Seasons

by kuroeko



Category: Inazuma Eleven
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-29
Updated: 2020-06-29
Packaged: 2021-03-03 18:48:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,474
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24980341
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kuroeko/pseuds/kuroeko
Summary: Seasons change, and yet feelings in the heart only grow.
Relationships: Afuro Terumi | Aphrodi/Fubuki Shirou
Comments: 11
Kudos: 21





	1. spring morning

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to [ Enkidudu ](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Enkidudu/profile) for beta!
> 
> It's a popular trope in Taiwanese fic to write 4 seasons ships, except afufubu only ever gets put in winter so I decided to just write 4 seasons of afufubu.

Spring was here, and the rainy season with it. Fubuki stood at the crosswalk, watching the passing cars run through miniature ponds that had formed in the road potholes. A new city, new life; he didn’t even know anyone here yet, having just recently moved here for university. Maybe a few old members from Raimon would’ve moved here too for school, although he hadn’t remembered to check social media much in the last few years. 

The rain came down harder, soaking the few unfortunate city-dwellers that had forgotten an umbrella. He looked up at the dreary overcast skies and cold winds, missing the scent of rain on greenery that had been ever-present in Hokkaido during this season. Now all he could smell was the overwhelming stench of car exhaust. The rainbow sheen of oil as rainwater mixed along the road surface to drain off into the sewers glimmered in front of him. Fubuki adjusted his umbrella to better deflect the wind and rain and watched his sigh condense into white fog that drifted off into the morning city air.

Nothing really shone or sparkled here, everything being the same backdrop of grey. Lost in his thoughts, he was startled when someone skidded to a stop next to him. A stray strand of wet hair blown by the wind hit him on the cheek. 

“Would be a good day to have a friend with an umbrella, wouldn’t it?”

Fubuki turned slightly to be met with twinkling red eyes that were framed by golden lashes laced with raindrops that had settled on them. He stared for a moment, then realized how familiar that playful voice had been. The long golden hair that was slicked down from the pouring rain further served to jog his memory. 

“Aphrodi?!” 

“The one and only — we’re still friends, I hope?” They hadn’t seen each other in years, not since the FFI tournaments. Yet when Aphrodi had caught sight of the familiar silver hairdo and quiet figure, he’d let his hopes rise again and changed his route to go see if his delusions were true. 

“I- yes? Why wouldn’t we be?” The crosswalk light changed at that moment, and a familiar chirping sound reminded all pedestrians to move along now. Aphrodi smiled and then sidled under Fubuki’s black umbrella, wrapping his frozen fingers around Fubuki’s stiff hand. 

“This means I now have a friend with an umbrella.” 

Pulling Fubuki forward, they crossed the street together, two people caught up in an unexpected encounter over the rain-soaked asphalt. Fubuki’s heart pounded faster in surprise, Aphrodi’s wet golden hair shining as he led the way. A beacon of light contrasting against the dreary cityscape around him. Falling back into step with him after crossing the street, Aphrodi let go of Fubuki’s umbrella and wrung out his hair while briskly keeping pace. It had only been a few seconds, yet Fubuki already missed the warmth that had grown between their cold hands. 

“Fancy meeting you here, I didn’t know you’d be in the city.” Fubuki never updated his social media, making it impossible to keep tabs on the elusive boy. Texting would’ve been easier yet Aphrodi could never bring himself to send over a casual message. Flirting was one thing but sincere texting was an impossible obstacle. He didn’t even know if Fubuki still had the same number after all this time.

“I moved here to start university, although I’m still new to the city, so I don’t really know much about this place yet...or who lives here,” Fubuki volunteered, wondering where Aphrodi was going. They’d crossed two more blocks by now and were still together under the same umbrella. 

“Oh! I’m going to school here, too, although…it’s definitely not the same one since it’s in a different direction than where you’re headed.” A familiar schoolbag and the hour of the day were enough for him to know Fubuki’s destination. Part of him hoped that wasn’t true, but his hopes were dashed when Fubuki nodded.

“That’s too bad, it would’ve been nice to know someone there. Where are you headed, by the way? I’ll drop you off.” 

_ Chivalrous as always, _ Aphrodi smiled, wishing he could say it was Fubuki’s classroom so he could be with him for just a little longer. 

“Just that coffee shop over there,” he pointed at one that was at the end of the block coming up. He didn’t even recognize it, but the location worked well enough. 

“Ah, I see,” Was that disappointment he had heard? Aphrodi glanced over at Fubuki, but the boy’s expressions had always been difficult to read, hidden behind a facade of strength. 

The rain came down even harder as they approached the coffee shop. Fubuki parted the waterfall that ran down from the short awning above the entrance with the lip of the umbrella. Aphrodi quickly deposited himself in the dry space then turned to look at Fubuki again.

“Well then friend, I hope we’ll see each other again soon.” His fingers itched to reach out and brush aside the stray bangs that had blown across and gotten caught in those silver lashes. They were just friends though, nothing more yet also nothing less. 

“I’ll...send you a text,” Fubuki suddenly remarked, remembering the existence of his cell phone. “That is, if you haven’t changed your number.”

“I haven’t!” Aphrodi hurriedly replied before suddenly getting buffeted with a hard gust of wind. Golden hair whirling around him, he pulled it back with annoyance only to see Fubuki’s cheeks had turned rosey from holding back laughter. 

“I’ll see you soon, then.” The gentle figure turned and disappeared back through the waterfall, leaving Aphrodi standing alone in front of an unknown coffee shop. Sighing to himself, he turned around to go into the inviting cafe to wait out the rest of the storm and stare at his phone screen in anticipation. 


	2. summer afternoon

Summer was here, and the scorching heat with it. Fubuki didn’t know how he’d been talked into this by the sweet silver-tongued devil known as Aphrodi, but he was now sitting on a beach towel carefully covering himself in sunscreen. 

“Fubuki, maybe you should let off on the sunscreen, I personally think you need a healthier tan to your skin,” Aphrodi plopped down next to him on the blue and white striped towel, hand slipping closer covering that invisible line of “just friends”. 

“I don’t tan. I sunburn.” A methodical reply mirroring how he was applying sunscreen to his body at the moment. 

“Let me help with that,” Aphrodi took over the bottle of sunscreen then parted the silver tufts of hair around the nape of his neck. Letting his fingers linger on the pale skin for a moment, he wondered how it would feel to give it a soft kiss. 

“Aphrodi?”

“Just seeing how pale you are.”

“Hey!” Aphrodi laughed as he jumped back to avoid an indignant hand trying to snatch back the sunscreen. Fubuki finally settled back down after he dutifully apologized and promised to help the wilting boy maintain his ghostly paleness. After carefully covering every square inch of Fubuki’s back, Aphrodi had to cautiously peel away the stray strands of his own hair that had been blown onto the freshly sunscreened surface. 

“This won’t do,” he muttered, scooting himself over to his bag where he pulled out some hairbands. Aphrodi crossed his ankles then tilted his head to one side and dragged his fingers through his hair, separating the long golden strands from one another. 

_ Just like a mermaid, _ Fubuki thought as he watched, fascinated by how deftly those fingers plied through the thin strands of golden silk. Closer, closer, he just wanted to see...

“Fubuki?”

Now it was Aphrodi’s turn to snap him back to reality, as he found himself holding onto one of the ends of the newly formed braid. 

“Ah! I’m sorry I just, it looked so smooth…” He had wanted to run his fingers through the gently fluttering golden wisps, now neatly tied down at the end with a red hair tie. 

“I do try, you know,” Aphrodi winked at him, causing a long-forgotten heat to appear in his chest. Distressed, he pulled back into the shade of the beach umbrella hoping to cool off his heart. 

“Come on now, you can’t just hide here all day when I took the trouble of braiding up my beautiful hair,” Teasing, Aphrodi reached forward and pulled Fubuki out of the shade, fingers registering the rapidly beating pulse under that pale thin wrist. The sun was so bright and blinding, casting its brilliance all along the beachfront but Fubuki could only see how it reflected off of the crown of Aphrodi’s golden hair. Just like a halo.

“Fubuki, can you swim?” 

“Hm? Yes?” He was wearing swim trunks, but hadn’t anticipated doing much more than poking a cautious foot in the water. 

“Wonderful.” 

The last thing he heard before being pulled forward into the sparkling blue ocean. 

Splashing in surprise, he rose up through the cold salty waters to break through the surface and spit out some stray water that had gotten into his mouth. Aphrodi slipped by next to him, laughing at his frazzled self. 

“I’m glad you weren’t lying, but I would’ve looked heroic rescuing you,” Aphrodi grabbed his hand again then pulled him along through the currents. “Can you open your eyes underwater? There’s something I want to show you.”

“I can…” Fubuki wasn’t truly sure if he could, but his curiosity overpowered any sense of caution he had. What was there to see in this vast body of water? He had never been interested in the ocean, and hadn’t pegged Aphrodi as someone who would be. 

“That’s great,” the ocean surged up around them again, but this time Fubuki forced his eyes open, feeling them sting in the salty water. Rounding the underwater base of a sea stack, he saw the wide-open ocean spread out in front of them. Brilliant blue that rivaled the sky above shimmered with the slowly changing tides. Light cast down past the choppy waves and reflected off of the undulating school of silver anchovies in front of him. Thousands of scales shimmered and moved in tandem. He watched, mesmerized, as the school moved as if it was one organism through the ocean waters. A tug on his wrist had him rising back up to the surface, gasping for air just in time as Aphrodi resurfaced next to him.

“Beautiful, isn’t it? They’re always over here, although not too many people swim this far out so they don’t see it.” 

It was beautiful, yes, but not as mesmerizing as the figure next to him. 

“Let’s go back now, before the tide changes.” Aphrodi ducked back underneath the surface and pulled on his wrist again, a spot of the warmth in the cold and vast ocean. Swimming at his side, Fubuki glanced over to see that some treacherous strands of golden hair had broken free of the hairband and were streaming along beside them. Spots of light dancing along his blue-tinted back, Aphrodi’s eyes were open and glanced back to meet his. They were purple underwater, blue mixing with red, yet still reflecting the sunlight that filtered down through the waters. 

A smile danced along those faraway lips and he felt a squeeze on his wrist in acknowledgement. 

_ Just like a mermaid _ , Fubuki thought again, but this one he wouldn’t let disappear into seafoam. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Upon writing this chapter I did a ridiculous amount of research on ocean migration patterns but also discovered that when googling "rocks jutting out of ocean" that they are in fact called [ sea stacks](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stack_\(geology\)) which is a really lame name for what they are.


	3. fall dusk

Fall was here, and the shorter days with it. The two walked together, soles tapping on the cobblestone pathway underneath them. Yellow gingko leaves washed over the entire park signifying the turn of seasons. Nothing escaped the reach of the fan-shaped leaves that fell off the trees that lined the pathway. The leaves softening the sounds of their footsteps as they made their way through the park. 

Aphrodi was cautious when it came to the cold, already bundled up in a red scarf with its ends tucked into the front of his thick navy pea coat. His hair seemed to serve as extra insulation against the cold, having been caught underneath the scarf and then cascading around his shoulders to assist in his battle against the elements. 

Fubuki watched with mild amusement, wearing only a light jacket (to humor the occasional flash showers) and a t-shirt underneath. Growing up in Hokkaido had its perks.

“Today’s restaurant was nice, it lived up to expectations.” He walked closer to Aphrodi, wondering if proximity body heat would help the poor thing.

“I’m glad. I saw it on a food blog I follow and wanted to try it with you.” The two of them had been meeting up regularly to enjoy a meal together when their schedules aligned. A cafe here, a restaurant there, sometimes even an izakaya although neither of them drank. Each time both of them were reluctant to part until a promise was made to see each other again at another establishment.

Spotting a vending machine up ahead, Fubuki broke off from hovering near Aphrodi’s side and went to purchase some hot drinks. Picking them up from the slot, he hurried back over to the slightly shivering figure and pressed the can of hot cocoa into the front of Aphrodi’s coat. 

“Here. Drink this and you’ll feel better.” 

“Ah.” Aphrodi looked around, then walked over to a bench, hands still shoved in his deep coat pockets to sit down. Lost, Fubuki followed him and awkwardly stood next to the bench, two drinks in his hand while staring down at an expectant gaze.

“The drink?” 

“Oh.” Handing one over, slender hands appeared from within the coat pockets and cradled the small black and gold can. Seeing that this might take a while, Fubuki sat down on the bench as well, carefully choosing the side that the wind was blowing from in order to shield Aphrodi from the bitter chill.

“Ahhh that feels better. Let me know how much that was,” Aphrodi smiled at Fubuki, cheeks turning red from the sudden warmth flowing through his body. 

“Don’t worry about it, just count it as a token for keeping me company.” Fubuki was grateful that Aphrodi spent so much time with him, knowing that no matter what the fellow student said, he definitely had plenty of people vying for his attention at university. Always popular, always surrounded by people. Nothing like himself, someone who shied away from the spotlight and yearned for a quiet life. 

“Tastes bitter now that you put it that way,” Aphrodi’s quiet voice carried upwind to him. 

“Why?” Puzzled as to when the wind had changed, Fubuki was now internally battling whether to switch sides of the bench or not. Aphrodi’s enigmatic remark wasn’t helping the situation. 

“I spend time with you because I enjoy it, Fubuki.” 

“Wouldn’t you generally enjoy spending time with your friends?” 

Aphrodi wasn’t looking at him anymore, staring instead at the lengthening shadows tinted orange by the setting sun. 

“I suppose, if you see me as just a friend.” Pinning the blame on others, how cowardly. Yet Aphrodi was afraid to speak out in case he ruined what they had at the moment. Just friends, although his heart had crossed that line long ago. The hot cocoa was gone by now, leaving a bitter aftertaste in his mouth. 

Getting up from the bench, he continued walking along the path after tossing the can, the sides of his shoes brushing against the fallen yellow leaves on the ground. It was growing darker now, the shadows blending into each other and dulling the shine of the bright yellow leaves around him. 

“Aphrodi,” Fubuki caught his arm, pulling it out from where he’d stuffed it back into his pocket. “Do you see me as more than a friend?” 

He didn’t care anymore upon hearing this question. Suddenly relaxing in Fubuki’s grip, he turned on his heel and landed a kiss on a pair of cold lips. A gentle hand slipped around his waist and pulled him in as they kissed. The taste was sweet, washing away the bitter cocoa from before. 

“If this is your answer, maybe I do, too.” Fubuki’s warm breath brushed against his ear, the two of them stuck in a tight embrace as the sun set behind the slowly shedding trees. The street lights flickered on and suddenly Aphrodi felt that he wasn’t so cold anymore, as a warmth was blossoming from within.   
  



	4. winter night

Winter was here, and the frigid winds and snow with it. Fubuki woke up sweating in his bed, something he should’ve been used to by now from all the past nightmares he’d dealt with. Gazing up at the dark ceiling, he couldn’t begin to guess what time of the night it was to be woken like this. Yet this time the fault lay within the being that had chased off all his nightmares, currently pressed up against him like a human heat pack. Carefully peeling himself off of the sleeping angel, he had barely given himself another inch of space before Aphrodi caught on in his sleep and scooted over to press against him again.

_ I’m turning the heater off _ , Fubuki grumbled internally as his free hand searched for the heater remote. Not like it would be useful anyways, as the moment he stuck his hand out of the blankets he was immediately bitten by the frigid air in the room. His other hand was currently stuck under his boyfriend, the source of all the warmth. Belatedly realizing that the heater was off, his movement had already caused Aphrodi to blearily blink awake, upset that the cold air had snuck in through the open blanket voids that Fubuki’s searching hand had created. 

“What are you doing?” He batted sleepily at Fubuki’s free hand, causing the blanket to flop over to the side and expose his upper half to the biting chill of the midnight winter air. Heater or no heater, the insulation in this apartment sucked. 

“Noooo,” Aphrodi whined as he scrambled to get the rapidly cooling blanket back over him and then shoved himself under the crook of Fubuki’s arm. 

“It’s too cold,” came his muffled proclamation. 

“It would be less cold if you put on some clothes after last night,” came Fubuki’s dry response. He’d deigned to put a t-shirt back on as he possessed some modicum of shame, but Aphrodi couldn’t be bothered as he had been overheating at the time. 

“You could always warm me up.” A sly reply. 

“After last night I would rather you not whine incessantly and make me carry you everywhere in the apartment again, so no.” Still indulgent of his needy lover, Fubuki rolled onto his side so he was facing Aphrodi and then wrapped his arms around him. Running his fingers through the long golden strands that reflected the muffled moonlight outside, he kissed the crown of muted gold. 

Slight movement outside caught his attention. Sitting up and pulling aside the worn curtains, he realized that flecks of white were catching on faint moonlight and flickering in and out of existence through the window. 

“It’s snowing!” He exclaimed in surprise. “The first snow of the year!”

“Disgusting,” Aphrodi cast a cold crimson gaze out the window. He’d make Fubuki shovel the snow later, claiming his hips were sore or something like that would work on his worrywart boyfriend. Wrapping his arms around Fubuki’s waist, he tugged on his lover’s shirt.

“Get back in bed, I’m cold.” 

“Really now, you’re always cold.” Pulling the curtains close again, Fubuki bent over to kiss him on the lips, then settled back into the cramped bed to indulge him. The apartment was built for only one person, yet the cramped space didn’t even help to trap the heat in. That didn’t matter to Fubuki, though, as he had his own furnace that somehow relied on him for heat. Aphrodi gave him a return kiss on the chin in response, not wanting to extend much further out from the warm blankets to profess his love. 

“Maybe it’s because of you,” their ankles knotted together underneath the layers of blankets. Fingers locking against each other’s, Aphrodi snuggled in closer to Fubuki, reveling in the warmth. “My snow prince.”

Blushing at this statement, Fubuki was suddenly glad that the room was dark again, only a sliver of moonlight coming in through the curtain cracks. 

“Go back to sleep, my guardian angel.” Without seeing his partner’s face, he already knew the smile that was gracing it at the moment. He settled back into the pillow, letting Aphrodi rest against his chest.

“I love you,” Fubuki murmured sleepily, eyelids drooping again as the warmth washed over him again. 

“I love you, too.” Aphrodi nestled against him, slowly drifting back asleep again to slip from one dream to the next. Ones where Fubuki was always next to him. 


End file.
